I need some help with information about code readers. I've got a mess of cars and want to do as many repairs as possible myself does anyone know of a reader that can do this? List of vehicles follows:
1. 99 Ford F150
2. 00 VW turbo new beetle
3. 02 Isuzu Axiom
4. 00 Ford Mustang
5. 00 Chevy ZR2 Blazer
6. 87 Suzuki Samurai
7. 88 Rockwood Motorhome
As you can see I need to do as many repairs as possible and a reader will help a bunch. Thanx for any help

 

Any decent OBD-II scanner will read all the 96 and on codes although some imports do have special requirements.

Chances are, the older vehicles have an easy-to-do procedure to get any stored codes in the event of a CEL.


Steve

 

I think Volkswagen, even though they use a standard OBD-II DLC, have some kind of proprietary communication standard with their scan tool that other tools don't jive with.

 

Ever since I tuned the rig with the Hypertech 41043, only the 41043 will read error codes on the rig. My garden variety OBDII reader just throws up "ERR" now. It still works fine on the wife's rig.
Thoughts?
Thanks!

 

 

Few ways to go with this.
1. There are ODBII readers, and readers, that allow you to reset individual codes or all codes. The reader alone is not bad, but if you have a string of codes, and want to remove just one, disco of the battery terminal won't do this. Just some FYI, it may not matter to you.
2. Most generic ODBII readers are only going to give the generic codes, nothing mfgr specific, unless it was bought for a specific make.

Options :
1. Actron makes a nice generic code reader, that is not costly. It is the Actron Super AutoScanner OBD II, list is 209.95, most places online have it for less then 150.00. Also has the options to buy the specific cables for going pre-1996, but these are per mfgr, and not all makes are available. I have an old version of this one, which I got first. Put it at Dad's house.

2. If you have a Palm or laptop, you can get the AutoTap software, which has the ODBII plug with a DB-9 serial connection, or USB connector. This is software updates via the internet, and you can also opt for mfgr specific code packages. This is what I use now for everything. You can get codes, and pull stats while driving, and save then to a log file. So you can pull items like A/F, IAT, RPM, Speed, MAFS rate, etc. It is a nice package, that is not a complete hog like most Win apps. Never tried the Palm version myself. Mfgr specific add ins are ~ 99.00 each, with some package grouping for 170.0 for 2 mfgrs, or 250.00 for all 3 US mfgrs.. No non-US mfgr plug in options.

3. Auto X-Ray makes a PC version, with mfgr specific add ins, and a hand held for covering ODBI and ODBII. These get costly, at ~ 550.00 for the 5000 version and ~ 280.00 for the 4000 version. These currently support the CAN protocol, which is the manditory protocol for 2008 and newer.

That is it for the ones that I know of, there might be newer ones out by now, that I have not seen, as I stopped looking for options once I purchased AutoTap.

Good luck with your search, let us know what you come up with for a selection, so the next member has some more input on the topic.